I think we all have one, two, maybe even a hundred friends on facebook that we don’t actually know in “real life.” After reading this story, you may want to re-evaluate who you’re interacting with on social media. Within two weeks, two local residents were victims of separate robberies while trying to sell shoes on facebook.

According to the Times Union, the first incident happened on March 22nd. A teen told police he was jacked at Albany High, where he thought he would be meeting a buyer for a pair of sneakers he posted on facebook. The 14 year old thief busted out a handgun and fled with the kicks along with the victim’s cell phone.

An identical situation happened a week ago on April 2nd. The vic posted a fresh pair of Air Jordans on facebook and met up with the buyer in Westland Hills Park. The buyer conveniently “forgot” his money at home and led the victim and his friend to a home on Davis Avenue.

There are certain precautions you can take to avoid incidents like this. When buying from someone on facebook or craigslist, always be sure to meet the buyer in a public place – the library, mall food court, gas station, hotel lobby, bank, coffee shop, or any place with lots of witnesses and security cameras in case of a robbery attempt. I would check with your employer first, but I personally prefer to meet online buyers/sellers at my work. Parking lots and fast food restaurants are no-no’s because people aren’t really paying attention to what’s going on around them.